Saturday, July 7, 2012

Comic Review: Memorial by Rich Ellis

Rich Ellis has always been one of those artists and authors that I've heard of, but never been that overly familiar with. I'm rather glad to say that this has changed.

Memorial is the story of Em, a young woman who arrives at a hospital in Portland, Oregon, with no memory of her past. A year later, she has rebuilt her life, only to find her existence thrown into turmoil after she inherits a magical shop and is drawn into a supernatural conflict between beings that not only represent, but are, fundamental elements of the universe itself!

The premise of this comic is good. Amnesia is a plot point that always seems to loop me into a series, partially because we're given a main character that knows just as little as we the readers do. That means that our main character of Em is just as likely to feel the same things we will, which helps us empathize and connect with her more. It's a powerful literary tool and Ellis uses it well.

Parts of this reminded me of series such as Fables, which is a good thing since I love those comics. (No worries, it's not a copycat in the slightest.) Just like Fables, we're given glimpses of an expansive and richly developed world that I can't wait to dive into with further issues. I love the idea of the Everlands and while I don't fully understand it, I do like what I see so far.

I also love the character of Em. She's really an "everywoman" type of character and like I said above, easy to connect with. However, I also love that she's prone to curiosity and best of all- isn't some busty and impossibly beautiful female character. (Not that I don't like looking at the impossibly beautiful female characters, but it's nice to see someone who I could see stepping off the page and looking at home in real life.)